Advertisers want clear rules, step-by-step checklists, and universal solutions they can apply to fix their campaigns. But Meta advertising doesn't work that way, and demanding certainty means missing where real solutions are found. Jon explains why "it depends" isn't a cop-out, why the best answers live in the grays, and how to get comfortable with the uncertainty that comes with actually understanding how things work.

Advertisers list every campaign detail when their results tank, like objectives, ad sets, targeting, placements, and creative counts, hoping the right setting will fix everything. But obsessing over the "how" of Meta advertising means ignoring what actually drives performance. Jon explains why you should focus on the "what" and "why" instead, and what questions you need to ask when troubleshooting bad results.

Meta now offers two types of attribution: standard and incremental. With machine learning models predicting which conversions were actually caused by your ads, this sounds great in theory. Jon explains what incremental attribution really means and whether you should actually use it for optimization.

On one hand, we're in the midst of an AI renaissance. Facebook has the reputation of being on the cutting edge of automation, machine learning, and optimization. And yet, they still can't detect and deal with the most basic scams. Why?

Jon and Luke were joined at the Pub by Rachel Woods, founder of The AI Exchange (https://theaiexchange.com/). In addition to being an AI founder, Rachel is a must-follow on TikTok (The.Rachel.Woods), where she creates short videos that make the complex easier to understand.

In this episode, Rachel talks about...

2:06 Her background working for Meta
6:54 How she built her TikTok account quickly starting in November of 2022
11:22 How Rachel decided to work in AI while working in the wine industry
18:22 How AI can be used for automation
24:17 What she tells people who are afraid of their jobs getting replaced
30:17 What hasn't she automated yet that she wants to automate?
34:25 The importance of prompt engineering
42:54 Should we worry about privacy and sharing too much with AI?
48:10 What is the GPT Playground?

The future of AI is both exciting and scary. Some of the scary stuff is based on predictions, and we really don't know what's going to happen.

Seriously, I don't know. It's not my expertise.

But what absolutely is scary is the required change that is coming. We will need to change how we do business. How we consume content. Even how we live.

Everything is going to change super fast. And we don't know exactly what's going to change or how.

That's freaky.

We can prepare the best we can and put ourselves in the best possible situation. But the truth is that we are going to need to be flexible in the coming weeks, months, and years.

That's easier for some of us than others. I don't like change. Hell, I just hopped into video about eight years too late because of my resistance to change.

But the nice thing I can take from this is that it's change that we are all facing together. It won't be easy, but it will be easier as a group.

We can do this, y'all. I know we can.

It's okay to admit that you need a little bit of luck.

I don't mean that we don't deserve our success. But there's an element of being in the exact right place at the exact right time.

As I look back at the 11+ years in my business, I can't help but notice this. But I failed to appreciate it at the time.

I was laid off at the end of 2011. I wrote about Facebook ads -- not because I thought it was a smart topic (although it was), but because that's what I knew. I wrote a LOT because that's what I was good at and I didn't want to create videos. I had a soft-sell approach because I wasn't a marketer at heart.

All of this worked. It was the perfect time for all of this to work. It almost felt like it was set up for me to work. Not because it was some grand strategy of mine (it truly wasn't).

I'm not saying that I didn't work hard or that I SHOULDN'T have had success. I just realize now how the stars aligned for me.

The important lesson is that I took it for granted and maybe assumed that I did have some sort of magic touch, thinking that this approach worked then and would always work. It doesn't.

I had to evolve. I didn't (until recently). I'm now trying to catch back up.

Just remember that there are so many factors that contribute to your success, or lack thereof. Don't assume that what you've accomplished is some sort of blueprint that anyone could follow -- or even that you could follow again.

Along those lines, you might be doing everything right, but you just haven't had that break yet. It's easy to doubt yourself when that break hasn't come, that you're doing something wrong.

I'm getting more philosophical as my perspective grows longer in this journey. And this is something that has truly hit home lately.

What do you think?

In this episode, Jon and JR explore the contradictions related to the way many business partnerships start and why Jon struggles to form them.

I worked with ChatGPT to create a 60-second movie and then I recorded it.

Creating this script was a process. I asked ChatGPT some specific questions. I didn't like the initial results. I gave it more instruction.

It was a series of many prompts. It's important that you understand that this isn't as simple as telling it to write you a movie and it comes out the way you want it. You have an important role.

If you have anxiety about ChatGPT and AI making your job obsolete, allow me to talk you off of this ledge.

Is it scary? Yes. Absolutely. This technology is likely to be more impactful and disruptive than anything we've seen since the birth of the internet.

That's scary.

But think back to the advent of the internet. Think back to how business was done prior to that point. It was different. Was the internet scary? Yes!

Your clients suddenly had access to all of the information in the world. All they needed to do was use the internet or run a Google search. But they still hired you to do it for them because you were good at the internet.

AI is like this. It's going to make certain things much easier to do. Let's imagine, for example, that anyone could assemble an ads strategy or develop a website in a matter of minutes with the help of AI. Imagine how that changes things.

Well, your client may be able to do that. But so could all of their competitors. How are they going to separate themselves? How are they going to compete?

You will still be needed, assuming you don't stick your head in the sand and hope this technology goes away. It isn't going away.

How you are needed will change. But if you leverage the technology to make you better and more valuable at what you do, you will still be needed.

I fully admit that this is scary. The unknown makes me anxious, too. There's plenty of bad that could come from this technology. And the same can be said about the internet.

Try not to focus on doom and gloom hypotheticals. Get to know the technology. And understand how you can best leverage it.

That will put you so far ahead of most people, who will be reactive and struggle to catch up.

Jon and Luke discuss the potential impact and use cases of ChatGPT and AI during this incredible time of discovery, innovation, and change.

Much of the criticism and skepticism in reaction to ChatGPT and AI is misplaced due to a misunderstanding of its value and purpose. Let's shed some light on how you should look at it...

This is a question I get a lot. Should you update your creative every couple of weeks? Every month? How can you avoid ad creative fatigue? There are three factors to consider.

Meta keeps talking about "creative diversification" as the new key to advertising success, replacing the old focus on targeting. Jon breaks down what this actually means with Andromeda's launch and why you need to abandon the 6-ad limit mindset for something much bigger.

The most common question I get these days is how I edit my videos. In some cases, I think the question is misguided. But I explain what I do here...

If you're an entrepreneur, this is a critical time of the year. Start 2023 by doing these five things.

You should have revenue and KPI goals. But first, you need to establish content marketing production goals. If you accomplish them, you'll be more likely to reach those KPI goals.

While the claim that you can compete against yourself in the same auction is a myth, Auction Overlap can still lead to problems. In this Shot, Jon explains what Auction Overlap is and this issues that can result.

The Pubcast is back! After a long hiatus, Jon invites John Robinson, his business manager and Backup CEO, back to the Pub with drinks in hand.

Topics discussed:

• Taking the Pubcast for granted
• The importance of trying new things
• How velocity contributes to learning
• Why you should create bad videos
• The source of motivation
• Making the cash register go ka-ching
• The similarities between baseball and business
• Swimming and learning to float

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Here's how to create a powerful video funnel with Facebook ads.

1. Publish videos regularly to Facebook and Instagram. I'm publishing one or two Reels per day.

2. Create an audience of anyone who watched 95% of any of your videos during the past 7 days. You'll need to update this audience every time you publish a new video.

3. Target this group with another video. I use an Awareness campaign with Reach optimization because this is a small group, but use what you're comfortable with.

4. Create a custom audience of those who watched 95% of THAT video during the past 21 days or so. These people watched at least one video to completion during the past 7 days AND this video. They are clearly engaged.

5. Target this group to promote your product. Once again, I use Reach, but use what you want.

Feel free to try it out!

The content creation graveyard is littered with creators who started and gave up. The beginning is the hardest part. This is how you can approach short-form video with the right frame of mind...

Some of the conversions that Facebook reports in Ads Manager never required someone to click on your ad. Here are two examples.

If you host a podcast, it really is that simple...

If someone shares your ad and the person you did not pay to reach converts, Facebook will not report it. They could, but they don't. Likewise, if you have the pixel and conversion events on your website, Facebook knows if someone who engaged with your organic post converted. Facebook could highlight that, too. So, why don't they?

When ads aren't working, most advertisers blame Meta or obsess over targeting and placements. But there's one fundamental question they never ask. Jon explains why this single question changes everything and where you should actually focus your energy.

One of the most common sources of confusion among advertisers is a misunderstanding of how Facebook credits an ad for a conversion. Here's a quick explanation of how that works.

A successful 2023 starts with a plan. A plan requires prioritization and grouping of similar tasks by day to be as focused as possible. Here's how you can approach it...

Do you feel disorganized and scattered? It's probably because you're winging it. Here's how you can get focused and specialized...

Some of the most popular content attempts to tell us how easy it is to accomplish some of the most difficult things. We want easy when we are unable or willing to do the hard stuff. Embrace the difficulty. That's how you'll grow!

There are a couple of updates Facebook advertisers desperately need that could drastically improve the quality and effectiveness of video views audiences.

Should you go completely broad with your Facebook ads targeting? No interests, no lookalike audiences, nothing? The strategy actually has some merit, but only for certain circumstances.

The frustrating part about short-form video is that it's not always evident that you're making an impact. If you create videos the way I do, you will rarely see direct ROI. But I was given two powerful examples recently of the impact that these videos are making.

There are countless factors that contribute to the performance of your ads -- some that you can control and some you can't. Here are 20 in under 60 seconds...

The Audience Expansion products should work, in theory. But there's one underlying problem with how they work now. And that problem could easily be solved with the addition of a very basic feature.

If you're new to TikTok, you're not ready to create ads yet. Take a step back and go through this process first...

Following someone's advice step-by-step without understanding why is dangerous for your advertising. Jon explains why copying strategies word-for-word leads to trouble and what you should do instead to build your own best practices based on knowledge, not gospel.

You cannot assume that all platforms are the same. Your goals can change because people on some platforms consume content differently. Here's what I learned...

As we head into Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday shopping season generally, know that this time isn't ideal for every brand. It's possible you should consider pulling back on ads by either lowering your budget or pausing for now.

Traffic and engagement campaigns for Facebook advertising are mostly unusable. But that could instantly change if Facebook made this one option available...

You can have Facebook optimize for a high Return on Ad Spend rather than focusing on the volume of purchases. Here's how that works...

Jon is suddenly hyper-focused on creating TikTok ads-related content. Why is that? Is he abandoning Facebook? Let's get straight to the point...

The algorithm is powerful. It can do things quickly and automatically that is simply not possible to do manually. But there are times when this powerful algorithm can work against you.

Not every marketing effort needs to have the goal of making money. In fact, there are times when you should create content with the explicit purpose of providing value while expecting nothing in return. Here's why...

How do you establish your campaign budget? Don't guess. Here's a simple formula to get you thinking about the ideal amount to accomplish your goals.

If you're a slow-talker who fumbles your words and struggles to get to the point (not mentioning any names here), short-form video can seem especially intimidating. You can actually do it without changing yourself or adding pressure to keep a recording concise and clean. Here's how...

In this Pubcast Shot, Jon quickly explains the best possible setup when managing ads for clients. Stay within these guidelines. It may be more work up front, but you'll be happy you did it.

A $5 cost per lead means nothing without knowing what happens after the form submission. Jon breaks down why value per lead is what actually matters and explains the critical questions you should be asking when your leads aren't converting into sales.

In this Pubcast Shot, Jon discusses his recent pivot towards short-form video, walking through what he did during the month of October.

In some huge news for advertisers, Meta is bringing back 28-day click attribution. This is huge for connecting conversions to our advertising efforts. Here's what you need to know.

Meta announced a restriction period for Facebook ads related to politics, elections, and social issues. In this episode, Jon discusses what that means, when it happens, what you can do, and what you can't do.

Read the related blog post here:

https://jonloomer.com/facebook-ads-restrictions-for-politics-and-social-issues-in-the-us/

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